This June marked the start of the beta test period for the Philippine Ragnarok Online MMORPG*, and it also marked a fundamental change in my life.
On June 11, I acquired the free Ragnarok Online CD and immediately installed the game client. Then I connected to the 'net, created a game account on the Level-Up Games site. Noting down the password they provided, I launched the game, which then proceeded to download the latest patches, a process that took all of 20 minutes on my 56.6 modem. Finally, I was able to enter the game itself! And it was then that I got hooked. I'd find myself waking up during the wee hours of the morning just so I can adventure some more with my character during the off-peak hours....
As MMORPGs go, Ragnarok isn't actually that groundbreaking. But the anime-ish 2D characters and the rich 3D world both combine to provide a certain magical charm. Most of the game is mindless hack-and-slash, but it offers the same thing the popular Muti-User Dungeons do: a dynamic world populated by "real" people where adventure lurks around every corner.
The Philippine Ragnarok Online beta test will last until August after which Level Up Games will most likely switch to a prepaid scheme just like their "chat game", OzWorld. As if I needed another vacuum for my money...
So until I join Ragnarok Addicts Anonymous, you can catch me on the Philippine Chaos server as the swordman, Laire Allicran, who specializes in two-handed swords...
*Massively Multi-player Online Role-Playing Game
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